Interactive voice response or IVR is an automated business phone system feature that interacts with callers and gathers information by giving them choices via a menu.It then performs actions based on the answers of the caller through the telephone keypad or their voice response.
The choices of the caller decide the actions of the IVR — it can provide information or, if the issue is more complex, route callers to a human agent who can better handle their needs.
If you ever called a business phone number and had been answered by an automated greeting, which proceeded to interact with you via some pre-recorded message, then you know what an IVR is.
Nobody likes wasting their time. But that’s exactly what can happen when someone calls a call center. There’s the long waiting time to get a live agent, the extended hold times because the agent isn’t fully equipped to address an issue, and the constant transference to different departments.
Worst would be times when their concern was not resolved after all that.When designed right, every step in the IVR has a purpose. Either the IVR is able to provide callers with the information they’re looking for or it can determine their needs so that they can be transferred to the right agent the first time.
This increases first contact resolution (FCR) and removes the need for customers to call again.
In the past, IVR systems were expensive. That’s not even taking into consideration the necessary hardware and infrastructure needed to support it. That’s why a lot of people still associate IVRs with enterprise-level solutions that only big corporations can implement.
IVR is not made to replace agents. It’s developed to make your call center agent’s life much, much easier.
With an automated IVR solving a lot of the simpler queries, it would decrease the number of calls agents are handling.
Without a proper IVR, call centers can be overwhelmed by a high volume of inbound calls, resulting in agents receiving calls that they're not equipped to handle. This leads to agents getting frustrated because they don’t know what to do to resolve customer’s concerns. Frustration leads to stress and unhappiness. Next thing you know, you have apathetic and unproductive employees who are on the brink of resigning.
The best part about IVR is that it's not dependent on humans to work. Once it’s programmed, it will continue to function unless configured otherwise.
This means, unlike us humans, it doesn’t need sleep or rest. Customers can call your company even in the middle of the night and there will be an automated message to greet them, and depending on how it's programmed, it can even process simple transactions.
Speaking of being unlike humans, IVRs are automated so it's not prone to errors. Compare this to when you employ a human receptionist to handle inbound calls to your company.
Aside from the possibility of being overwhelmed by high call volumes, manual handling of incoming calls can also lead to mistakes where calls are routed to the wrong department or agent.
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